


First Time At Ollivander's

by xseaxwitchx



Series: Snape Appreciation Month 2k17 [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: child!sev is a weakness of mine, his mom and him shopping for supplies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-30
Updated: 2018-01-30
Packaged: 2019-03-11 08:29:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13520457
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xseaxwitchx/pseuds/xseaxwitchx
Summary: Eileen and Severus take a visit to Ollivander’s to get Severus his first wand for Hogwarts (because I would get way too fucking carried away with an entire day at Diagon Alley, tbh)





	First Time At Ollivander's

**Author's Note:**

> I also have a tumblr; come say hi!

The travel into central London was everything but comfortable: people would constantly stare at them, recoil if either of them got too close. Unfortunately, Eileen was offered money and asked if she and her boy were homeless on more than one occasion. She refused the money, knowing what Tobias would do if he found out she gained extra money from going into central London. She, knowing that he would be upset no matter what, told him that she and Severus were going to gather his school supplies for Hogwarts. That was a nasty fight last night, Eileen sporting bruises on her upper arms and around her ribcage. Severus was also sporting bruises in relatively the same areas, but they were covered, so no one knew. **  
**

Walking into the Leaky Cauldron, a couple of patrons looked up at them, taken aback by their poor state. Eileen prayed that no one would ask questions as she threw weary smiles at each person that dared make eye contact. Severus was taking in the dingy pub, the hearty patrons, the warm, crackling fire in the hearth the completed the homely feel of the place. He looked on in wonder, a slight smile tugging at his lips as he followed his mother, still clutching hand. Thankfully, they made it out of the pub and into the back without disturbance. She tapped the bricks in the correct order to reveal a bustling alleyway without, it seemed to Severus, walking room.

“Now, Sev, my dear, since I can no longer carry you, I’m asking you to hold tightly onto my hand and to not let go, not even the slightest. If you feel that we are going to be separated, hold on harder and push through; ‘s all you can do,” Eileen told Severus as she bent down to eye-level, squeezing his shoulders to show her sincerity of words. Severus has always been short for his age and now is no exception. He has always been scrawny as well, which never was in his favor when it came to his father or the other neighborhood boys. Constant fights which Severus would lose, ending those days with a sore bottom and, “Off ter bed, ye bloody sissy! I asked fer a boy an’ I git a girl! Bloody fucking shame, ye are!”

Severus nodded a reassurance to his mother, taking her hand and following her into the bustling crowd. It wasn’t nearly as bad as his mother made it out to be, and maybe that was due to most intentionally moving a little farther from them, gawking at their state.

From what Severus could make out, there were shops for everything; he spotted a sweets shop, a robes store, a pet store, and so much more that flashed before his eyes as his mother kept a steady pace ahead. They both ended in front of Ollivander’s and thankfully, it was desolate. Not a soul was in there, save for Ollivander. Eileen looked down at her boy, took a deep breath, then pushed the door open, the ringing of a bell on top signaling their entrance.

Eileen cleared her throat a bit, then called out, “Mr. Ollivander, are ye in today?” A rustling was heard from the back right of the store, followed by a crash and a “Fucking hell!” A white-haired man with questionable fashion and eccentric eyes made his way to the front of the store. Finally noticing Eileen and Severus. He remembered his expletive. “I apologize for my strong language earlier. Anyway, how are you doing Eileen? And I’m safe to assume this is your son?” Ollivander asked, gesturing to the boy who let go of his mother’s hand and took curiosity in a table to the left of the storefront. Eileen’s face was plastered with a fake smile, one she put on when she had to speak to her boss, and replied, “In all honesty, I could be better. And yes, that’s my son, Severus. I’m afraid that I won’t be able to make a full payment on his wand upfront, it would have to be a long span of time.” Eileen regarded her son with genuine love, a real smile tugging at her lips as he became confused as to why the drawer wouldn’t open. She turned her attention back to Ollivander as he began to speak. “Oh, don’t worry about paying. No, no, no, no, no, no; it’ll be on me. And I will not, under any circumstance, take ‘No’ for an answer. Now, boy, come here so I can see what wand would suit you best.” Severus’ head snapped up and he stopped tugging on the handle. He looked at Ollivander with guarded curiosity, carefully making his way to the enthusiastic old man. Eileen was standing off to the side quietly, watching the scene unfold. Severus has always been a bright one, never quite trusting anyone of first meeting them; understandably, of course, from what goes on at home.

Ollivander soaked in the young boy’s curious brown, almost black, eyes, greasy black locks that framed his face, his clothing, and his general persona. Ollivander made a sound of curiosity that formed in the back of his throat, reverberating throughout the store. He smirked, making haste to the very back of his store, taking a few minutes to dig through his tediously stacked wands.

While he was busy doing that, Eileen made her way over to her son, absent-mindedly running her bony fingers through his greasy hair. Severus found this comforting as he closed his eyes and remembered the rare nights she got to do that without fear of his father to ruin it. “Hey, Sev, what do you think of the old man?” Eileen asked her son gently. Severus opened his eyes, craning his neck up to look at his mother, who wasn’t very tall either, as her hand rested on the nape of his neck. “He’s a bit weird, but I like ‘im. He’s nice. He’s trustworthy. Yeah, I like ‘im, why ma?” replied Severus, a slightly apprehensive look on his face. Eileen let out an amused breath at his confusion.

“Oh, I was just asking because it’s hard to find good people to trust these days, ‘s all,” Eileen answered.

“Did you get your wand from him, too, ma?” Severus’ look of apprehension was replaced with one of curiosity that would not be satisfied without an answer. Eileen was about to reply when Ollivander beat her to it. “Of course she got her wand from me! There is no finer wandmaker in Britain that Ollivander’s and saying so is an insult to my products! Now, let’s see here. Try this one.” Ollivander took the wand from its case and held it out to Severus who took it and stared at it, thinking  _What the bloody hell am I supposed to do with it?_

“Well, go on; give it a wave. Just a little one, like so,” Ollivander stated as he observed the confusion on Severus’ face. Ollivander made a little swishing movement with his right hand to demonstrate what to do. Severus copied him, and a lamp in the right corner of the storefront exploded into shards of green and yellow. Eileen jumped, as did Severus, who clung to his mother without missing a beat. Ollivander took in this odd behavior, unbothered by the exploding lamp because he became used to it; he wondered what made these two act as they did. “Well then, that one is definitely not it. If you would be so kind as to hand it back to me, Severus, I’ll go get the other one that was on my mind earlier,” Ollivander spoke up. Severus looked up at Eileen, who patted his back as if to say that’s okay. He proceeded to detach himself from his mother, handed over the wand, then went back to her, not quite clinging to her, but close enough to hide in less than a second. Severus wasn’t too much of a timid child, but after knowing what an apparently wrong wand can do and the fear of his father somehow finding out, he risked nothing at the moment.

“Ah, here we are. Beautiful, isn’t it?” Ollivander quipped as he came back a minute later. He repeated his actions from earlier, Severus following in suit. He gave this particular wand a wave, and this time, a quill that was sitting on Ollivander’s desk began to gently float, tickling the boy’s cheek, eliciting a little laugh from his tiny body, producing a gentle smile from his mother that was full of pure love, and from Ollivander, an enthusiastic smile, and clap of the hands. “You’ve found your wand! I’ve still got it even though I am 73 years old. Now,” he looked back at the boy with his hand held out, “if you give me your wand, I can tie it up and then it can officially be yours.”

Severus placed the wand into Ollivander’s hand, barely containing his excitement. He was finally able to call something his. For as long as he could remember, he had nothing to claim as his own; everything was a hand-me-down of some sort, and even his own bed wasn’t actually his bed, his father made that clear enough the first time Severus dared called it his own.

“Mam, I’m finally getting something of my own! I don’t have to share it, and Da can’t claim it to be his because he’s a muggle! He has no magic!” exclaimed Severus. This was the happiest Eileen had ever seen her boy in so long, it made her heart ache.

Ollivander finished wrapping up the wand, then gave it to Severus who took it all too gladly. “Thank you, sir! Thank you so much! I’ll never forget you!”

“That’s a fine boy you’ve got there,” said Ollivander, facing Eileen as Severus busied himself with inspecting the ribbon that kept the two pieces of the box together.

“Are you sure I don’t have to pay? It feels so wrong on my end considering I didn’t have to pay for mine when I was 11 nor when I was 16,” Eileen voiced.

“Child,” stated Ollivander as he took hold of her left shoulder over the counter and looked into her eyes, smiling, “your payment is bringing me joy here in my shop today from your son. I’ve seen so many older boys and girls extremely happy when they got their wands, but there’s something extraordinary about Severus and his joy and happiness. I know you may not trust me too much or want nothing to do with me other than supply your son a wand or two because you know wands change with age, but if there is anything bothering you, feel free to write or visit. You’re not looking your best; you look worse than when you came last.”

“I…I really can’t–”

“Please.” That one word held so much weight in the ensuing silence that Severus dared to look up and switch his focus between the tearful eyes of his mother or the sad ones of the kind gentleman.

**Author's Note:**

> Like I said, timing is up for interpretation. Some of this is based on my personal headcanons (like Tobias’ dialect and implied (?) abuse) but then again, at least one of those is generally accepted so…without further ado, enjoy!


End file.
